30-year study hopes to unlock mental illness

A team of researchers is using a 30-year study of 4,000 women and their children to try and uncover what role genetic and environmental factors have on mental illness.

Transcript

TONY JONES, PRESENTER: It's the Seven-Up of the medical world. An Australian study has been documenting the lives of 4,000 women and their children over 30 years. In the latest phase of the project, based in Queensland, a team of researchers is trying to uncover what role genetics and environmental factors have on mental illness. Natalie Poyhonen reports.

NATALIE POYHONEN, REPORTER: Angie Burton has been the focus of a scientific study her entire life. When her mother Gail Murphy was pregnant, she joined one of the world's largest studies of mothers and their children.

GAIL MURPHY, STUDY PARTICIPANT: Not knowing at that stage it was going to be, like, 30 years down the track.

NATALIE POYHONEN: They've been asked to share information ranging from stories about family life, health and substance abuse every seven years.

GAIL MURPHY: I don't think that there's been a subject not covered.

NATALIE POYHONEN: And that's given researchers inspiration to broaden their study. They're now looking into the causes and recovery from mental illnesses like depression and anxiety.

JAKE NAJMAN, UNI. OF QLD: Why these thing happen, what it is about the lives of these people that determines the onset, the duration and recovery from mental disorder.

NATALIE POYHONEN: And what link genetics might play.

JAKE NAJMAN: How a genetic susceptibility to a particular problem is impacted by particular environmental exposures.

NATALIE POYHONEN: Providing information that could even benefit participants.